If you photograph birds, I can’t recommend a better time than after a snow!

I made an excursion on Feb 5, 2019, with substantial snow still on the ground.  I encountered this Song sparrow in the neighborhood.

My next stop, when I noticed a substantial amount of bird activity, was at a grove of trees at the north end of the paved parking lot of the Cap Sante Marina.  There I found American robins, Eurasian starlings and about two dozen Yellow-rumped warblers, all of which I saw were Audubon’s.

While photographing the warblers a male Ruby-crowned kinglet made a brief appearance… this may be the best photo I’ve ever taken of one!  It’s very unusual to see the red crown exposed, especially when the bird is not visibly upset.

I next encountered a tree full of berries, and obtained photos of American robins,

and male and female Varied thrushes, partaking of the feast.

This male Varied thrush was obtaining water from a puddle that wasn’t frozen.

This Bewick’s wren, which I never saw approaching, happened by while I was photographing other birds.

I find it somewhat unusual to find a Fox sparrow off the ground, but this one flew into a bush and posed for me!

With light and time fading, I decided to see if I could find Snow geese on Fir Island.  As I crossed the North Fork of the Skagit River the task seemed daunting… there was nothing but snow-covered fields stretching away from me with no sign of any birds in the air!  I drove to the location where I had seen geese a few days before (Maupin Road) and found a large flock on the side of the road.  I can never figure out how the geese realize that hunting season is over, but I was able to drive right up next to them.  Retracing my route after visiting the Jensen F&W Access, I found the geese crossing the road in front of me!

On this day I had seen and photographed five sparrow species (Spotted towhees, Dark-eyed juncos (Oregon), Song, Fox, White-crowned); both kinglet species; and two thrush species (American robin and Varied thrush).  277 photos